


Impersonator

by RensSaxophone



Category: Uta no Prince-sama
Genre: Blood and Gore, M/M, Torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-23
Updated: 2020-08-23
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:28:41
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,303
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26064259
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RensSaxophone/pseuds/RensSaxophone
Summary: Ranmaru ends up in a situation that seems far too familiar in the worst possible way.
Relationships: Hijirikawa Masato/Jinguuji Ren, Ichinose Tokiya/Kurosaki Ranmaru
Kudos: 4





	Impersonator

**Author's Note:**

> This is sort of a Saw crossover? The Saw movies exist, though the actual elements in it technically don't, but this is basically still a Saw trap, so if that's something you don't like to read/don't want to, then please be careful reading this, or don't if it's not something you can handle. But thank you to those that read it and if you do I hope you enjoy it! Even though it's incredibly dark.

When Ranmaru wakes up, he’s sore. His entire body aches, but more than anything, his mouth hurts- it feels like it’s glued shut. But when he comes to enough to think straight, he realizes that the last thing he remembers is being attacked when he and his husband Tokiya had arrived back home, and that sends him into a genuine panic. He sits up, causing the old chair he was in to creak beneath him, and his eyes search the dimly lit room, looking for Tokiya, or any trace of him. All he finds is a clock timer and an audio recorder. 

He gets up from the chair, and he winces as he steps on broken glass. There’s a thin covering of it, over the entirety of the floor- along with what seems to be upturned and sideways rusted nails and blades that seem like they’re out of disposable razors and Ranmaru’s shoes are nowhere to be seen, leaving him entirely barefoot. He manages to make his way to the recorder, playing it. 

“Ranmaru Kurosaki- 

You have a device in your mouth that will go off at very slight provocations. If you open your mouth, or you heavily emote, it will activate and the spring will raise, breaking your jaw. You will have a small chance of survival, but should you live through it, the others in this building will suffer from its activation. 

Learn to control your anger. You will have one hour to save what lives you can, your husband’s included. The timer will start when you open the door.

Live or die. Make your choice.”

The voice is heavily distorted with some type of voice modifier, but that thought is nearly forgotten when the last line plays- because he _recognizes it_. 

Tokiya had shown him this movie before. Ranmaru hadn’t paid _much_ attention because mindless gore really wasn’t his thing, but this was a horror movie. 

Ranmaru has to take a moment to push down his anger and keep his face completely blank. He wouldn’t screw Tokiya over because he wasn’t able to control himself. Even if this entire situation were _bullshit_. 

Ranmaru was absolutely livid, but he takes a deep breath in through his nose, and he opens the door. 

He’s faced with a sight that makes him sick. There are two chairs on lifted platforms, and his eyes draw at first to the one on the right. The man there is Ren- his orange hair tied and knotted and restrained on a part of the chair he’s sitting on, forcing his head up. He’s struggling, clearly having been awake for longer than Ranmaru. There’s a shotgun sitting in between his knees, a nearly transparent string tied to the trigger and leading to the gun across the room. The man sitting there, in a very similar position to Ren, is Masato. Masato’s hair isn’t restrained, but a matching gun is between his knees as well. Both Ren and Masato have their hands restrained to the chair they’re sitting in, though Masato is struggling less than Ren. His expression is just as desperate, even with as still as he is, and his eyes don’t leave Ren, even as Ranmaru walks in. 

This is another audio recorder. Ranmaru wishes it weren’t- because whatever it said, he wasn’t sure that Ren and Masato needed to know. It was already clear to Ranmaru that there wasn’t likely a way to help them both. 

Before he plays the tape, he takes another look at the situation. If he pulls a gun away from one of them, it will go off. If he avoids the shot himself, from pulling it down, it will hit the person across from the one he’s trying to help. If he takes the shot, the other trigger is likely to pull from the string, killing the other person. They’re too far away for Ranmaru to have any hope of pulling down both guns, and it would be lucky if all three of them survived the shot, anyways. Someone was bound to be hit and he’s be lucky to survive two close range shotgun wounds.

Ranmaru presses play. Ren has been glancing in his direction from the beginning, but Masato’s focus turns to him when the distorted voice plays. 

“You can choose only one person to save. 

When you move one gun, the other will go off. If you waste longer than one hour in this room, all lives in this building will be forfeit. 

Make your choice.”

When Ranmaru turns back towards them, he’s met with two different expressions. Ren’s is terrified- he’s the one that speaks first. 

“You can’t hurt him, Ranmaru, please- you have to save him, Ran, please!”

Masato is silent, but Ranmaru has never seen this expression before. He’s never seen someone’s _eyes_ so desperate in pleading for someone else’s life. 

Ranmaru had spent so much of his life helping both of these men- and he was well aware that they were married. He and Tokiya had gone to their wedding. They had been in the wedding party, for God’s sake. And now he was expected to only help one of them. 

Ranmaru can’t waste too much time. He doesn’t know what else he needs to do before he can help Tokiya.

 _But_ this entire situation had Ranmaru seething from his very core- so he drowns out Ren’s pleas and keeps his eyes on the guns in front of him, even as Masato squirms and Ren begins to become more hysterical. 

And then Ranmaru finds something that might work. It wouldn’t be perfect- but it could save a life. Ranmaru goes to Ren, and Ren’s expression is dangerous. Ranmaru’s face doesn’t change. 

Ranmaru grabs Ren’s foot by the ankle, and Ren’s expression turns into a panicked confusion. Ranmaru hovers Ren’s foot just by the gun, forcing his knee to bend. Ranmaru holds up three fingers, and then Ranmaru kicks the air in front of him. 

Ranmaru hated charades, but he didn’t have much of a choice. Ranmaru holds the gun steady, and repeats the action one more time. He lifts three fingers slowly, and then mimics a kick. When he lets go of the gun, Ren very slowly nods. 

Ranmaru heads to Masato. 

Ranmaru couldn’t take two shots if he wanted to- if he thought he could take it, because the guns wouldn’t both turn towards him at the same time. But Ranmaru could at least reposition the gun. 

Masato’s eyes are searching Ranmaru’s, for answers to his plan. 

“Why aren’t you speaking?” Masato asks softly. He’s afraid- it’s a tell in his shaking voice. Ranmaru motions towards his mouth and carefully shakes his head. It only leaves Masato with an unsettled expression. 

Ranmaru holds up his hand. 

One finger up. 

“Ranmaru, what are you doing?” Ren’s voice is shaky. 

Ranmaru holds up a second finger. 

Ren needs to listen. Ranmaru gives Masato a serious look. It asks him if he’s ready, and it begs him to take Ranmaru seriously. 

“Listen to him, Ren, please.” Masato’s voice is so quiet it’s a miracle Ren can hear it, but Ranmaru knows he does. 

Ranmaru’s hand settles on Masato’s gun and he turns his head to watch Ren as he holds up a third finger. As soon as Ren’s foot moves, Ranmaru pushes back on Masato’s gun and uses his second hand to pull Masato forward. 

The bullet hits Masato’s shoulder- and then the second shot from Ren’s gun hits Ranmaru’s. Ranmaru was lucky it hadn’t hit just a bit lower or he wouldn’t have been making it any further than this. Masato cries out in pain. 

Ranmaru stays quiet, his face only changing in that his eyes widen, rolling up into his head in pain, but luckily the device in his mouth doesn’t activate- and because the guns have gone off, the restraints are loosened. Ren spends only a few seconds, ripping out chunks of hair to get across the room, to get to Masato. He forces Masato out of the chair, to get him away from the gun, and then he hugs him. 

Ranmaru hasn’t ever seen a hug so tight yet so, so careful. 

He can’t hear what Ren is mumbling to Masato. The blood rushing in Ranmaru’s ears is too loud. 

The broken glass on his feet is nothing compared to the pain in Ranmaru’s shoulder. But Tokiya is still in the building and that’s Ranmaru’s main concern right now. He walks past Ren and Masato silently. It takes them a long moment to follow him. 

Ranmaru isn’t sure what’s stronger, when he sees Tokiya- his relief or his rage. 

Tokiya isn’t in the first room Ranmaru sees him in- though a timer of three minutes lights up when Ranmaru enters the first room. The timer is in the second, on the wall above Tokiya’s head. Tokiya is almost sat in a chair- though he has a noose made of what seems to be barbed wire wrapped around his neck, too high for Tokiya to sit without choking. Tokiya’s arms and legs are restrained, and his arms shake with the strength it’s taking to hold himself up high enough. There’s a metal handle in front of the window, and a door. There’s another audio recorder, connected to a string. 

When Ranmaru plays the recorder, the string pulls. 

“If you have managed to help one person in the last room, you have made your task easier. If you haven’t, it may be too late. 

The handle in front of you, once pulled, will heat rapidly, but will loosen the pull on the noose around your husband’s neck- loose enough to be pulled off by a second set of hands. If you don’t have those, your only hope is to free your husband by your own hands and hope you can release him in time. 

The timer will start now, at the end of this tape. 

Good luck.”

As soon as the timer starts counting down, Ranmaru heads to the handle. The amount of self-discipline it takes to avoid pulling a pained face as he lifts the handle. It isn’t a surprise when the metal starts getting unbearably hot, and the only way Ranmaru manages to hold it is seeing Tokiya’s body slump, no longer forced to hold himself up as the noose loosens. 

“I’ll be okay.” Masato’s voice is severely pained. “He needs help.”

Ren nods. It’s clear how he has to force himself away from Masato, but he’s fast when he slips through the door, into the room that Tokiya is in. 

Ren winces, as he works on getting the noose off of Tokiya’s neck. At the one minute mark, it’s off of Tokiya’s neck. All of the adrenaline that had filled Ranmaru, the strength that allowed him to pull the handle drops, as soon as Tokiya is safe. When the handle falls, the empty noose jerks up. Had Ranmaru let go earlier, Tokiya would have died. There was no question. 

Ren helps Tokiya out of the restraints, and Ranmaru watches Tokiya squeeze Ren’s arm, the best thanks he can muster. His eyes are on Ranmaru. He’s out of the door before Ren is, stumbling like a newborn deer, though Ren isn’t far behind. 

Ranmaru sees the terror in Tokiya’s eyes, taking in the obvious wound and the blood covering Ranmaru’s shirt. 

“Maru?” Tokiya’s voice trembles, and Ranmaru almost winces at the nickname. It wasn’t a common one- he was usually just Ran, but Maru was a special one, usually used when Ranmaru was upset or hurt. Tokiya’s hand carefully lifts, but Ranmaru catches Tokiya’s hand before it touches his face. He feels a stab of guilt flood through his chest. “I’m sorry.” Tokiya’s voice is too high, and it breaks as he speaks. 

“There’s something wrong with his mouth.” Masato says tiredly. Ren is already back by his side. “It’s not your fault.”

Ranmaru’s hand ghosts over Tokiya’s neck, just below his wound, and then Ranmaru takes his free arm to wrap around Tokiya. Tokiya’s eyes trail down, and his eyes widen when he notices Ranmaru’s feet, already cut to hell. Tokiya moves, and Ranmaru catches him going for his shoes. He squeezes Tokiya’s shoulders, to get his attention, and he shakes his head. 

“You’re already hurt-” Tokiya’s voice is shaky, but Ranmaru just shakes his head again. Ranmaru is the first one to continue on, and Tokiya goes with him, clinging to Ranmaru as carefully as he can. It isn’t comfortable- it hurts his shoulder to be touched anywhere on his torso, and there’s a sore spot near his stomach, but he doesn’t say anything. There are two doors in the next room, and one of them has a key hole. There’s a note on a table addressed to Ranmaru. 

It sends an ache through his chest when Ranmaru forces Tokiya off of him to check the note, but he does. Ren helps, setting one hand on Tokiya’s shoulder, the other still clinging to Masato. Ranmaru reads the letter, as Tokiya and Ren speak quietly- Tokiya’s question had been about Ranmaru and Masato’s shoulders, the wounds seemingly matching, and in an unsteady voice, Ren explains. 

Ranmaru had other preoccupations. 

_The locked door in the room is an exit._

_Your device will trigger if you leave- but any others with you will suffer no consequences from leaving. There is a key in your abdomen that will unlock the door._

Included, there is a scalpel and a picture, showing where the key should be in his stomach. Luckily, it doesn’t seem to be deep, and when Ranmaru lifts his shirt, he sees the stitched area. 

It hurts when Ranmaru forces his injured arm up enough to hold his shirt. His mouth would have been easier, but it wasn’t an option. His jaw was really starting to ache. Ranmaru has to use his non-dominant hand to cut himself open, but it isn’t until he’s actively digging the key out that Tokiya realizes what he’s doing. 

“Ranmaru!” 

Ranmaru breathes out heavily through his nose as he pulls out the key. Unfortunately, Tokiya catches the last of the act. 

“My God - _Ran_ -” 

Ranmaru shakes his head. He forces his shirt down, and then moves, unlocking the door. Tokiya’s eyes widen, hopeful, even as Ranmaru brushes past him. Ranmaru steps back- he shakes his head. 

He hates the way Tokiya’s face falls. 

Ranmaru gives a gentle nod towards the door. He’s left the bloody key in the door. Ren takes careful steps towards the door, and Masato has no say in it. Ren hesitates, his eyes focused on Tokiya. Ranmaru stops by Tokiya, gently urging him out with a hand on his back. 

“No. No, no, I’m not leaving!” Tokiya shakes his head- and Ranmaru grabs it. He gets some blood on Tokiya’s chin, but it was clear that it was painful, the way that he was moving his head. The blood was better than aggravating his injury. 

“Icchi-” Ren says gently. 

“No!” It takes everything Ranmaru has to keep his face straight when he sees Tokiya’s eyes, shiny with tears. Tokiya moves, clinging onto Ranmaru’s arm. “I’m not leaving. You… you two should. Go get help- for us and for Masato- but I’m not leaving Ran.”

“It’s not safe.” Ren’s jaw is grit and his eyebrows are pulled in. “And you’re injured, too.”

“Would you leave Masato?” Tokiya says fiercely. “If he were in Ranmaru’s position?”

Ren is quiet for a few long moment, and then he sighs, taking a step back. Ranmaru tries to catch Tokiya’s eye, but Tokiya won’t look at him. Masato is beginning to look too pale- too out of it. He really does need medical help, and soon.

It isn’t until they’re out that _Tokiya_ moves. It’s hesitant, but it’s towards the other room. Ranmaru’s blank expression doesn’t come easily.

There are two doors- but one is labeled “solo” and the other is unmarked. Ranmaru doesn’t try the solo door- there’s no point. If it isn’t locked, it could be _more_ dangerous for Tokiya- as much as the idea of putting Tokiya through another one of these things makes him physically ill. 

In the second room, there are three things. An LED computerized counter, starting at _0_ , a whip, and a piece of paper with two numbers. 

_20_. 

Ranmaru closes his eyes for a long moment, and when he opens them, he walks forward to grab the whip. It’s long, thin, and it’s clear that it could do some damage. Ranmaru is reminded of his idol days- back when he, Tokiya, Camus and Ren were in Joker Trap, because that was the last time he had even thought of a whip. At least as a weapon. 

Ranmaru forces it into Tokiya’s hands, but Tokiya shakes his head, rapidly, sternly. Fiercely. Ranmaru wants to stop him, because it looks painful, but Ranmaru’s only real working arm is busy, holding the whip to Tokiya’s chest. 

“I won’t. I haven’t been through half of what you have so far, Ranmaru. I can take this.”

Ranmaru shakes his head. 

Tokiya gently forces the whip back. “No. I won’t. We need to get out of here and get you medical attention- we need to get this over with. Please.” Something crosses Tokiya’s face- guilt, Ranmaru realizes. His voice is too soft. “If you ask me not to do this, I won’t.”

Ranmaru’s face doesn’t change. Everything in him wants to say something. To stop Tokiya from doing this- hell, to scold him, even. But Tokiya would be left in a bad spot if Ranmaru left his composure, and Ranmaru had no intentions to force Tokiya to watch him break his jaw. 

“I’m sorry.” Tokiya says quietly. Ranmaru’s hand finally, slowly closes around the whip. 

Tokiya moves forward, to kneel on the floor and lean against the wall. Ranmaru doesn’t like that the glass must be digging into Tokiya’s knees, but he can’t tell that to Tokiya right now. 

The only good thing about this is that Ranmaru isn’t physically capable of hitting him very hard, with his non-dominant hand and his injury. 

Each whip just gets worse. Tokiya can’t stay quiet after the second. Ranmaru hates hitting him, but he had accidentally gone too soft on one hit and the counter hadn’t gone up. Ranmaru was careful not to do that again. After ten hits, Tokiya was crying, and his hands were shaking, even braced against the wall. His entire body was- and his breathing was coming shallowly. His shirt was torn and his back was ripped up, covered in cuts. One whip cuts through the cloth and into Tokiya’s skin. It hadn’t taken much. 

Ranmaru walks forward, and he offers the whip to Tokiya. “No, Ran, no.” Tokiya whimpers. 

Ranmaru shifts the whip, under his injured arm, ignoring the pain to pet through Tokiya’s hair. 

“Fifteen.” Tokiya gasps out. “...If you… if you really think you can handle it. We can see if… if they stack at fifteen.”

It must be bad, if Tokiya was willing to stop before twenty. Ranmaru wants to stop him now- but without being able to talk, he wasn’t going to be able to get Tokiya to go any lower. 

It’s hard, for Ranmaru to walk back- but he does. Because now Tokiya needs medical attention, too. 

The last five for Tokiya just get worse. Tokiya yelps every time the whip hits him, and he’s sobbing at the end of the last five. 

Ranmaru walks forward, and he doesn’t hand Tokiya the whip yet. He just starts by tucking the whip under his bad arm and he pets through Tokiya’s hair for a long moment, until Tokiya’s crys turn into sniffles. 

“I can take the last ones.” Tokiya says hoarsely. “I’ll be okay.” 

This time, Ranmaru does offer him the whip. 

“Please.” Tokiya’s face is pained, and Ranmaru doesn’t retract his hand. Tokiya is shaky when he stands. 

Ranmaru doesn’t kneel. Ranmaru just leans against the wall, his good arm lifted to press against the wall and his forehead pressed to his arm. 

“I’m sorry.” Tokiya’s voice breaks. 

The first whip is incredibly painful. It’s obvious that Tokiya is trying to avoid his preexisting wound, but it’s too big and the whip brushes against it- and it _burns_. It reminds him of his palms, red and raw and very burnt. Ranmaru glances at the counter, but he’s relieved to see that it says sixteen. 

It was a hopeful assumption that they would carry over. 

The next four get progressively worse, and much harder to stay quiet, but Ranmaru manages. His shoulders slump in relief when he hears the door open. The whip falls to the floor, and Tokiya makes his way to Ranmaru. He’s not walking right, and Ranmaru hates it. Ranmaru is in an incredible amount of pain himself, but he wishes he had taken more of it, just to keep it off of Tokiya. He hated seeing Tokiya in this much pain. Tokiya presses a gentle kiss to the front of Ranmaru’s shoulder, away from his new and old wounds. 

“It has to be almost over.” Tokiya can’t help the sob. “It has to be.”

Ranmaru just gives a small, careful nod. 

In the last room, there is no glass on the floor. There are no timers, or recorders or notes. There’s a table that a man is sitting at, a gun in front of him. 

“You’ve made it to the end.” The man holds up a remote. On the hand holding the remote, there is a bracelet. “This green button will activate the device in your mouth, and the red one will deactivate it. I’m behind all of it, obviously.”

“Why?” Tokiya’s voice is angry. Livid. 

“I had the time, the money, and I love the movie series. I’m sure both of you have figured out what movie I’m copying. Imitation is the purest form of flattery, right? And you even figured out a way to save _both_ of your friends. You should feel honored that you were the first ones to get to not only pass it, but actually _win_ it. And you’ve taught me what to do better for my next group.” The man stands. “But now. You can kill me- but this bracelet is monitoring my heart rate. If it stops, your trap activates. Or, I could take the gun and leave the remote. You can deactivate your trap, and leave when I’m gone. If you come after me, before I’m gone, I’ll shoot you. It’s your choice.”

“Don’t.” Tokiya’s eyes widen, and he holds tightly onto Ranmaru’s uninjured arm. “Leave him, Maru. I want to keep you.” Tokiya’s voice ends in a whimper. Another moment that’s nearly impossible to keep his face straight. 

Ranmaru stays still. 

He wants to. He wants to go for the gun- to make him pay for doing this to them. To Masato and Ren. To Tokiya. 

Ranmaru had gotten crazy lucky, managing to avoid not killing Ren or Masato. While this man waited, Ranmaru was memorizing every detail of his face. The first thing he’d be doing is writing down every detail he could remember, from the tone of his voice to the color of his eyes. He wanted this man to be caught. To be punished the way he needed to be- even if Ranmaru wishes he could just kill the man now. But even if he shot him somewhere non-lethal, the man could just set the trap off himself. 

So he waits until the man switches the remote with the gun. He stays still until the man is outside of the room and then he walks forward, but it’s Tokiya that presses the red button, watching Ranmaru with a terrified expression. Luckily, Ranmaru feels the item in his mouth release pressure, becoming smaller. Ranmaru waits until he’s sure it’s good, and he carefully opens his mouth. Tokiya’s eyes had been focused on his mouth, but Ranmaru still almost jumps when Tokiya’s fingers reach into Ranmaru’s mouth to remove the device himself. As Ranmaru shifts his sore jaw, Tokiya sets the device on the table. 

“Open your mouth again.” Tokiya says gently. Ranmaru does, though when Tokiya pulls back, Ranmaru speaks, his voice quiet. 

“That’s it.” He mumbles. “‘S the only one.”

“You’re sure.” Tokiya’s voice is guarded. Ranmaru reaches out, and he presses the green button. Tokiya jumps when the metal coil springs up, almost immediately. There’s a thicker part at the top, and Ranmaru assumes it’s some sort of technology, commanding it to release. 

Tokiya looks at Ranmaru’s face, sighing when he really is fine. Tokiya presses the red button, and the coil retracts. Tokiya grabs both. 

“Evidence.” Tokiya says grimly. 

“Just be careful holdin’ it.” Ranmaru mumbles. “Don’t want you ‘t accidentally get hit with it.”

“I won’t. ...We should go. He should be far enough.”

Ranmaru just nods. It hurts, but it’s almost a numb action.

Tokiya keeps a tight hold on Ranmaru’s arm with one hand. 

They walk until they find others, and then they wait for an emergency vehicle to arrive. Ranmaru is leaning heavily against Tokiya, and he’s really not trying to, but Tokiya isn’t complaining about it and that’s making it harder to keep himself standing alone. 

“How’s yer back?” Ranmaru mumbles. 

“It’s not anywhere as bad as a shotgun wound to the shoulder.” Tokiya’s voice is a bit dry.

“That’s not what I asked.”

Tokiya sighs. “Of course it hurts, Ran, but I’ll manage it. I’m far more worried about you.” 

“‘N yer throat?”

“Maru-” Tokiya looks up at Ranmaru with a look that gets Ranmaru’s eyebrows to furrow. “I’m okay. I mean it. Please let me worry about you, darling.” Tokiya’s lip trembles, and Ranmaru knows he doesn’t mean to look quite as desperate as he does, and that makes the entire look worse. 

“...Just fer now.” Ranmaru finally relents. Tokiya moves so that he’s hugging Ranmaru’s uninjured arm, his head resting on Ranmaru’s shoulder until the ambulances get there. 

For the first week, Ranmaru is alone- because he’s in a single person room and Tokiya is getting his own treatment. For the next week, Tokiya is released, but he shows up to Ranmaru’s room every day. The nurses and doctors on this shift are very aware of their situation- as well as Masato and Ren’s, who were also in this hospital, though Ren only needed his hands to be bandaged from the barbed wire and hadn’t even been held. The only good thing about it was that Tokiya and Ren, as visitors, were allowed to stay later than they should have been. Tokiya had slept nights in the hospital, even though Ranmaru often told him that he should go home, because sleeping in the chairs with his fucked up back must hurt- Tokiya told him it was a very small price to pay to be with Ranmaru. 

A week and a half later, Ranmaru is released. Tokiya stays pressed to Ranmaru’s side from the moment he’s out to the moment he’s inside. Tokiya is hesitant to enter, though their house had been searched by cops, and Tokiya had called Otoya to be with him to invite someone to fix the locks and install an alarm system- one that Tokiya disarms and rearms as they enter. 

“This won’t happen again.” Tokiya promises quietly. “The authorities will find him. I’m sure of it.”

The police had taken the stories of the four survivors, and Ranmaru had given his description of the man and Tokiya had given them the item he had taken. Ranmaru hoped that would be enough to stop the man- and to keep what had happened to them from happening to anyone else. Ranmaru lets Tokiya lead him to the bed, but when they’re in the bed, Ranmaru rests on his good side, and he carefully brings the hand of his still injured arm up to cup Tokiya’s face and to pull him in for a gentle kiss. When he pulls away, he presses his forehead to Tokiya’s. 

“I think Ren’s pissed at me.” Ranmaru admits in a low mumble. “I think he’s tryin’ ‘t act like he’s not, but I saw it in his eyes when he visited me. When he was tryin’ ‘t get you ‘t leave with ‘im. I think he’s tryin’ not ‘t show it because it was supposed ‘t be him _or_ Masato ‘n I managed ‘t get them both out- but I know he wishes I had gotten him shot. ...But the way Masato looked at me. ...If I had ‘t kill one. If I couldn’t ‘ve figured it out- I would’a saved Ren. I just understood. If it had been me ‘n you…”

Tokiya’s hand lifts, gently pressing to Ranmaru’s lips to quiet him. “I don’t want to think about that.” Tokiya’s voice is strained. “...I can understand why Ren is upset, but when Masato is better, he’ll understand. He may never agree with it- but what else were you to do in a situation like that? And Masato would have been upset, had you listened to Ren. There was no right answer- but you did the best that you could. They’re both still alive, and that’s what matters. They’re going to have each other for a very long time. Tokiya’s hand slides up to cup Ranmaru’s cheek, his lips moving just a bit closer to Ranmaru’s mouth. “All four of us got out of there and it’s all because of you, my love. That’s the best outcome we could have hoped for. And now we all have recovery to do. And I know you want to worry about me, but right now, I want you to let _me_ worry about things. I want you to worry about you getting better- because you deserve a break, Maru. You didn’t deserve anything that you went through, and as much as I wish that I could fix that, I’m powerless to do so. So all I can do is take care of you now.” Tokiya finally presses his lips to Ranmaru’s again. 

Tokiya finally pulls away, and he’s careful when he curls into Ranmaru’s chest, but his forehead presses to Ranmaru’s collarbone, his body curved so that his back isn’t pressed to anything and so that he’s not pressed against Ranmaru’s stomach. Tokiya’s legs tangle with Ranmaru’s, and Ranmaru’s hand settles carefully on Tokiya’s thigh. 

It’s awkward, and Ranmaru feels bad that his position must be more comfortable than Tokiya’s, but for now, he doesn’t say anything. Tokiya’s hands curl into the front of Ranmaru’s shirt, as gentle with the action as he can be. 

“I was scared.” Tokiya admits quietly. “...In the hospital. I was afraid that something would happen- that you had done something I didn’t know about. That your wounds would get infected and there wouldn’t be anything they could do. Your gunshot wound is… it’s really bad, Maru. I’ve been having bad nightmares and they’re all about what would have happened if you hadn’t made it. If you wouldn’t. I love you so much. I don’t… I don’t even want to think about losing you. And God- I know it isn’t my fault… that it can’t possibly be my fault because the movies _exist_ and I’ve just _seen_ them but…”

“It’s not.” Ranmaru says firmly. “That guy was fuckin’ sick. You weren’t the one with some sick obsession that was willin’ ‘t _hurt_ people, Toki. ‘N I’m okay. I’m gonna be okay. It was real bad, but it’s gonna turn out okay. We’ve just got a lotta steps to get it there.” Ranmaru ignores the pain in his shoulder as he ducks his head to kiss the top of Tokiya’s. “I love you, too, Toki. ‘N I’m not gonna be leavin’ you fer a real fuckin’ long time.”


End file.
